The Oregon wrestling team finds itself with a bye this week and is preparing for its Civil War dual with Oregon State in Corvallis Dec. 10.
The Ducks dropped their Pacific-10 Conference opener to UC Davis last Wednesday at McArthur Court with a close score of 26-22. Junior standout Shane Webster said he and his teammates wrestled well despite the disappointing loss.
“It was definitely a let down for us,” Webster said. “We were snake-bitten by injuries and guys not making weight, but we did our best and it showed.”
The Ducks were forced to forfeit three matches due to injuries
suffered by juniors Martin Mitchell (133), Skyler Woods (141) and Joey Bracamonte (165). Unlike Mitchell and Woods, Bracamonte saw time on the mat — he faced Frank Richmond of UC Davis — before painful cramps forced him to retire late in the first period.
Webster is undefeated this season and has made a name for himself in Oregon wrestling after red-shirting last year. Webster looks forward to wrestling Oregon State and said the Ducks have worked hard training for the game against the Beavers.
“We’ve focused on conditioning this week and have done a lot of running,” Webster said. “Making weight and staying healthy are key for us right now.”
Oregon head coach Chuck Kearney said the team had much to gain and improve upon from its dual with UC Davis.
“This was a match we can look back on and use as motivation,” Kearney said. “Our first task is to get healthy. We need to improve our overall conditioning and emotional toughness.”
Sophomore Joey Lucas started the Ducks off strong as he recorded a 10-5 decision over Pancho Manriquez in the 125-pound weight class. With Martin and Woods absent from the dual, the Aggies took a 12-6 lead in the next two matches as they claimed six points from each forfeit. The early six-point cushion took pressure off UC Davis’ Daniel Murphree, who wrestled well against redshirt freshman Stewart Bogart en route to a 17-2 technical fall in the 149-pound weight division. The Ducks bounced back when sophomore Cyle Hartzell (157) recorded a 12-5 decision over Cooper Fouch. Bracamonte’s ensuing forfeit left the Ducks trailing 23-9 going into Webster’s match at the 174-pound weight class.
Webster continued his winning ways by etching an 18-3 technical fall over Daniel Price to keep the Ducks alive. The Aggies did not let up as Brandon Bear recorded an 8-2 decision over junior Chet McBee at the 184-pound weight division. McBee wrestled well, appearing unfazed by Bear, who reached the NCAA Championships last season. Bear’s decision sealed the deal for an Aggie victory in the dual — but the Ducks would not go quietly.
Oregon senior Scott Barker cruised to a technical fall over Reed Shelger at the 197-pound weight class to improve his overall record to 9-1.
Sophomore Chris Dearmon closed out the dual with an explosive pinning of Evan Hendrix in the heavyweight division. The two wins late in the dual brought the Ducks to within four, but their early forfeits proved critical as the Aggies prevailed with a 26-22 win.

Scott J. Adams is a freelance reporter for the Daily Emerald